International Boundary Waters Treaty Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. I-17)

Marginal note:Agreements with provinces

20 The Minister may, with the approval of the Governor in Council, enter into an agreement or arrangement with the government of one or more provinces respecting the activities referred to in sections 11 to 13.

Administration and Enforcement

Designation

Marginal note:Power to designate

20.1 For the purposes of the administration and enforcement of this Act, the Minister may designate persons or classes of persons to exercise powers in relation to any matter referred to in the designation, including, with the approval of a provincial government, persons or classes of persons who are authorized by that government to exercise powers and carry out functions with respect to bodies of water in the province.

Powers

Marginal note:Authority to enter

• 20.2 (1) An inspector may, for the purpose of verifying compliance with this Act, enter a place, including a vehicle, in which they have reasonable grounds to believe an object to which this Act applies is located or an activity regulated by this Act is taking place.

• Marginal note:Powers on entry

  (2) The inspector may, for that purpose,

  • (a) examine anything in the place;

  • (b) use any means of communication in the place or cause it to be used;

  • (c) use any computer system in the place, or cause it to be used, to examine data contained in or available to it;

  • (d) prepare a document, or cause one to be prepared, based on the data;

  • (e) use any copying equipment in the place, or cause it to be used;

  • (f) remove anything from the place for examination or copying;

  • (g) direct any person to put any machinery, vehicle or equipment in the place into operation or to cease operating it;

  • (h) prohibit or limit access to all or part of the place;

  • (i) take samples of anything in the place; and

  • (j) conduct tests on, or take measurements of, anything in the place.

• Marginal note:Dwelling-house

  (3) If the place is a dwelling-house, the inspector may enter it without the occupant’s consent only under the authority of a warrant issued under subsection (4).

• Marginal note:Authority to issue warrant — dwelling-house

  (4) On ex parte application, a justice of the peace may issue a warrant authorizing an inspector who is named in it to enter a dwelling-house, subject to any conditions specified in the warrant, if the justice is satisfied by information on oath that

  • (a) the dwelling-house is a place referred to in subsection (1);

  • (b) entry to the dwelling-house is necessary to verify compliance with this Act; and

  • (c) entry was refused by the occupant or there are reasonable grounds to believe that entry will be refused or that consent to entry cannot be obtained from the occupant.

• Marginal note:Use of force

  (5) In executing a warrant to enter a dwelling-house, an inspector may use force only if the use of force has been specifically authorized in the warrant and the inspector is accompanied by a peace officer.

• Marginal note:Authority to issue warrant — non-dwelling-houses

  (6) On ex parte application, a justice of the peace may issue a warrant authorizing an inspector who is named in it to enter a place other than a dwelling-house, subject to any conditions specified in the warrant, if the justice is satisfied by information on oath that

  • (a) the place is a place referred to in subsection (1);

  • (b) entry to the place is necessary to verify compliance with this Act;

  • (c) entry was refused by the occupant or there are reasonable grounds to believe that entry will be refused, that consent to entry cannot be obtained from the occupant, that entry cannot be effected without the use of force or that the place is abandoned; and

  • (d) all reasonable attempts were made to notify the owner, operator or person in charge of the place.

• Marginal note:Waiving notice

  (7) The justice may waive the requirement to give notice under paragraph (6)(d) if he or she is satisfied that attempts to give the notice would be unsuccessful because the owner, operator or person in charge is absent from the justice’s jurisdiction or that it is not in the public interest to give the notice.

• Marginal note:Stopping and detaining vehicles

  (8) For the purpose of verifying compliance with this Act, an inspector may, at any reasonable time, direct that any vehicle be stopped — or be moved, by the route and in the manner that they specify, to a specified place — and they may, for a reasonable time, detain that vehicle.

Marginal note:Authority of analyst

• 20.3 (1) An analyst may, at an inspector’s request, accompany them into a place for the purpose of assisting them to verify compliance with this Act.

• Marginal note:Powers on entry

  (2) The analyst may, for that purpose,

  • (a) examine anything in the place;

  • (b) take samples of anything in the place; and

  • (c) conduct tests on, or take measurements of, anything in the place.

Marginal note:Disposition of sample

20.4 An inspector or analyst may dispose of a sample taken in the place in any manner that they consider appropriate.

Marginal note:Entry on private property

• 20.5 (1) For the purpose of gaining entry to a place referred to in subsection 20.2(1), an inspector and any analyst accompanying them may enter private property and pass through it, and are not liable for doing so. For greater certainty, no person has a right to object to that use of the property and no warrant is required for the entry, unless the property is a dwelling-house.

• Marginal note:Accompanying person

  (2) A person may, at the inspector’s request, accompany the inspector to assist them to gain entry to the place referred to in subsection 20.2(1) and is not liable for doing so.

Marginal note:Assistance

20.6 The owner or person in charge of the place and every person in the place shall give all assistance that is reasonably required to enable the inspector to verify compliance with this Act and shall provide any documents, data or information that is reasonably required for that purpose.

Marginal note:Certificate

20.7 The Minister shall provide every inspector and analyst with a certificate of designation and, on entering a place, they shall produce the certificate to the person in charge of the place on request.

Marginal note:Immunity

20.8 An inspector and an analyst are not personally liable for anything they do or omit to do in good faith in carrying out their functions.

Marginal note:Production of documents and samples

• 20.9 (1) The Minister may, for the purpose of verifying compliance with this Act, by registered letter or by a demand served personally, require any person, within any reasonable time and in any reasonable manner that may be stipulated in the letter or demand,

  • (a) to produce at a place specified by the Minister any sample taken or any document; or

  • (b) to conduct any tests or take any measurements or samples there.

• Marginal note:Compliance

  (2) Any person who is required to do anything under subsection (1) shall, despite any law to the contrary, comply with the requirement.

Regulations and Orders

Marginal note:Regulations

• 21 (1) The Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the Minister, make regulations

  • (a) specifying what constitutes a use, obstruction, diversion or work for the purposes of this Act;

  • (b) defining, for the purposes of this Act, any word or expression used in sections 11 to 42 that is not defined in this Act;

  • (c) [Repealed, 2013, c. 12, s. 8]

  • (d) specifying exceptions to the application of subsections 11(1) and 12(1);

  • (e) prescribing classes of licences and determining the persons who are eligible to hold licences of any particular class;

  • (f) respecting applications for licences, including the form of the applications, the information to be provided in respect of the applications and the manner in which the applications are to be filed, processed and disposed of;

  • (g) respecting the form of licences and the information they must include and requiring licensees to publish or otherwise make them available for public inspection;

  • (h) prescribing fees, or the manner of calculating fees, in respect of licences and prescribing the manner in which the fees are to be paid;

  • (i) prescribing the duration of licences;

  • (j) respecting the renewal and amendment of licences;

  • (k) prescribing uses, obstructions, diversions and works for which a licence may not be issued; and

  • (l) [Repealed, 2013, c. 12, s. 8]

  • (m) generally for carrying out the purposes and provisions of this Act.

• Marginal note:Ordinary meaning applies

  (2) For greater certainty, regulations made under paragraph (1)(a) do not restrict the ordinary meaning of the words “use”, “obstruction”, “diversion” or “work”.

Marginal note:Order — Schedule 3

• 21.01 (1) The Governor in Council may, by order, on the Minister’s recommendation, amend Schedule 3 by adding, deleting or amending the name of any transboundary waters.

• Marginal note:Consultation

  (2) Before recommending that Schedule 3 be amended, the Minister is to consult with the appropriate Minister of the province where the transboundary waters are located.

Aboriginal and Treaty Rights

Marginal note:Rights of aboriginal peoples

21.1 For greater certainty, nothing in this Act shall be construed so as to abrogate or derogate from the protection provided for existing aboriginal or treaty rights of the aboriginal peoples of Canada by the recognition and affirmation of these rights in section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982.

Obstruction and False Information

Marginal note:Obstruction

22 Obstructing a person designated under section 20.1 or hindering them in carrying out their functions under this Act is prohibited.

Marginal note:Knowingly providing false or misleading information, etc.

• 23 (1) It is prohibited to, with respect to any matter related to this Act, knowingly

  • (a) provide any person with false or misleading information, results or samples; or

  • (b) file a document that contains false or misleading information.

• Marginal note:Negligently providing false or misleading information, etc.

  (2) It is prohibited to, with respect to any matter related to this Act, negligently

  • (a) provide any person with false or misleading information, results or samples; or

  • (b) file a document that contains false or misleading information.